Janome Zig Zag Foot (A)

The Janome Zig-Zag foot (A) comes standard on all Janome Sewing machines and is used for most utility sewing; from straight stitch to zig-zag. The Janome Zig-Zag foot (A) is also called the All-Purpose Foot or General Sewing foot, or simply “A” foot.

What is the Janome Zig-Zag foot (A)?

The Janome Zig-Zag foot (A) is the standard foot that comes on Janome sewing machines. This standard and easy-to-use foot has a medium width which will let you tackle all kinds of sewing; piecing; garment assembly; quilting; tote bag making and anything else you can put under your needle. Use this as your starter foot and become familiar with its capabilities. 

What is it used for?

If you have ever taken a sewing class, chances are this is the foot that was on the machine. It is capable of a variety of stitching, and it is resilient with metal construction. Some models have a bit of clear plastic in the “toe” of the foot for improved visibility.

If you are looking to sew a quick seam and think you may also need to do a bit of decorative stitching, grab the “A” foot. Because of its versatility, it is a multi-use foot to have. The zig-zag foot does have its limitations, though. Of course, you would not use it for buttonholes or likely wouldn’t be your first choice for achieving ¼ seams. Janome has other specialty presser feet for those tasks!

 

There are also variations of this foot depending on the machine model you have. 

The most common Janome Zig-zag foot (A) is the full metal design. Most 5mm and 7mm machines have this type.

The next most common is the type with a clear inner toe and the unique Black Leveling Button on the right side, which will help you stitch over the “hump” when sewing over thick seams. This black button is meant to help keep the foot level by locking it in place, allowing thicker fabric layers to feed more evenly. This is especially useful when hemming jeans. Many 7mm and all 9mm machines have this type of “A” foot.

Fun Fact: When Janome sewing machines are tested at the factory, the following two presser feet are part of the standard arsenal of feet used to ensure proper stitch quality and consistency.

When testing any computerized sewing machines, their display indicates to use the “A” foot when sewing a zig-zag stitch or straight stitch, as the bottom of the foot is flat.

If you select a decorative pattern, the machine suggests using the Janome Satin Stitch F foot (discussed in the previous Janome Jump Start Blog Post) which is less likely to cause a stitch jam and sews beautifully as the groove in the underside of the foot allows for the extra build-up of stitches to easily feed through the machine.

Both the Janome Zig-Zag foot “A” and the Janome Satin Stitch foot “F” can be used to sew straight lines, but decorative stitches should be sewn using the Satin Stitch foot “F” or the Open Toe Satin Stitch foot “F2”.

Have you ever used the Janome Zig-Zag foot “A” when sewing a decorative pattern and had the pattern fall apart? This is because there is no groove on the underside of the foot, and the extra build-up of threads in the decorative stitch act as resistance and prevent the fabric from feeding, causing the pattern to collapse.

Until Janome machines pass these quality tests, they are not sent out, so these basic, utilitarian presser feet play an important role in every Janome sewing machine.

Next time we will talk about the ¼ seam foot! Happy Sewing!